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JDZWART 0

Prior lake is very busy, there are several homeowner associations with mini-marinas on the lake, so there are way too many boats on the lake on the weekend. If you want to fish on the weekends, try the sand point launch, but you better be there by 6am, at the latest. You can also pay (I think $20 for a truck and a trailer), to park in the beach parking lot adjacent to sand point.

I share your frustrations on Prior Lake, I live a couple of miles from the lake, and I will usually buzz over and check the launch at Sand Point before hauling my boat over there.

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Reef Runner 0

The crazy thing is that they allow cars to park in the trailer spots. We had a small league there last night and it was nuts. There were more cars than trailers in the lot. They were all going over to the beach and did not want to pay the $5 to park your car over there. The DNR was called and it is legal to park your cars there. Man is that a stupid rule.I am sure the people that live on the lake will be happy to here that none of us will ever be fishing there again.

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StrosLit31 0

i am shocked that it is leagal to park a car in the longer parking spaces for a truck and trailer. I have seen many tickets and cars get towed at the launch on Lake Marion in Lakeville for that same reason. But they do have signs stating this at lake marion.

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JDZWART 0

I do not recall seeing any signs at the Sand Point lauch regarding parking, but I know the launches on Minnetonka have signs that are very specific as to which spots are for vehicles with trailers and which are not.

From past experience, the DNR owns the Sand Point Launch, but it is the PL police that actually patrol and issue tickets. I had a "discussion" with a PL cop after I was issued a ticket for parking in the grass because there were cars parked in the trailer spots. He really did not have a response when I asked why he was not also giving the cars parked in the trailer spots a ticket. He said they were doing nothing wrong????

I think the PL police would be the best to start to pursue this further.

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TMF89 0

Yeah we ran into some cops on Bald Eagle ice fishing that were on one of those power trips. Some truck's front tires (that's all) went through when they hit a pressure ridge. They were able to back right out and everything, but the cops still put up concrete barriers and declared there needed to be 26" of ice before motorized vehicles (including ATVs/snowmobiles) were allowed on the ice again. Right as we pulled up, a suburban and F-150 with tow straps were pulling them out of the way, lol.

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fishinpapa 0

Isn't it good to know that eventually all the lakeshore residents will have their own private lake!! Again we wonder why people are getting out of fishing. The same is true for Spring, O'dowd, Marion etc.,.

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Wish-I-Were-Fishn 1

Isn't it good to know that eventually all the lakeshore residents will have their own private lake!! Again we wonder why people are getting out of fishing. The same is true for Spring, O'dowd, Marion etc.,.

Yeah, I've wondered why license sales are down. Couple that with high gas prices, and it makes going north very expensive for some. Can't fish at home; can't afford to go north, guess they are finding other hobbies to pursue.

Gee, with declining license sales, if we wait long enough we WILL get a spot at the launch to park!

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picksbigwagon 11

First my email:"I applaud the city council for enlarging the trailer parking at sand point beach and the work done on that landing. My concern presently is the number

of vehicles that park in that lot that are not pulling trailers.

These people park in trailer parking spots so they don't have to pay the $5 parking fee at the park lot. These people then hop out of their cars and walk down to the beach. No where in the access parking lot does it say

for trailer parking only. It is frustrating to try find a place to go fishing with my kids when parking spots are taken up by non-trailer pulling vehicles. Prior Lake is a heavily used lake for weekend boaters and the lack of parking is a huge issue as you well know. I have been at other lakes in the metro area, and most of those lots have a sign posted for trailer parking only and tickets are handed out to violators."

City Managers response:

Tom, Councilmembers have asked that I get back to you regarding your

e-mail.

We thank you for the complements about improvements made to Sand Point

Park Lake Access but those improvements were accomplished by the

Department of Natural Resources (with a fair amount of city help) which

is the agency which owns and operates the access. I have heard others

express the concern that you have so I will be asking the DNR to post

the lot accordingly and enforce the signs.

Thanks for bringing this matter to our attention.

I responded with an email of who patrols the lot then? I asked if it was the sherrif's department, the city of prior lake, or the DNR who hands out the tickets. I will be put that contact number up here so the next time it happens, Call the correct enforcement agency.

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vikingmeatwad 3

Regarding the cars without trailers using our spots I agree that they shouldn't be in there. They are allowed to park in nearer spots unlike us. The "Car/Trailer parking only signs aren't law but they sure help enforce the parking, example Tonka.

There are so many lakes in the metro where this is becoming a huge issue with landowners and us peasants who can't afford a house on the lake.

Anyone know anyone that lives near the access and will let people pay them to park in their yards/drives?

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picksbigwagon 11

I don't know anyone, I do see a lot of boats in the rainbow parking lot on the corner of 42 and 13. I know a guy who drives his boat to the lake, leaves his teenage son, takes his trailer and truck home and goes back to the landing on his bike.

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fishinpapa 0

Anyone still wonder why people are getting out of fishing?? At least if I make a 3:00 tee time, I know I can play golf at 3:00. Does anyone wonder though if our license and trailer fees are going to the DNR for access and fisheries management, wouldn't we have "ownership" of the parking then? If part of our license and trailer fees are for access and landing, then wouldn't a designated parking are be included.

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Orlip 0

Seeing hows you have a report with Frankie maybe you could ask him why the south access has a sign there that does say "NO PARKING VEHICLES WITHOUT TRAILERS" I have wondered myself why the sand point access is not this way.

Might have something to do with the 150' parking rule the city was trying to pass last winter. I wonder who is bending the ear or arm on these issues???

I am to blame here as well as I was going to call the DNR on this and have yet done so but I think a person should hear from the horses mouth why one access is posted and not the other.

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CanOCorn 0

I totally agree with you guys on the parking situation. I live 2 blocks from the Dewitte launch so worst case, I park it at home and march back to the lake.

However, here is what really erks me. The jack holes that launch their boat without a plan. If the parking lot is full, have a plan before you put your boat in and then start driving around our neighborhood at 70 mph looking for a spot. Guess what... if it is within a mile of the launch, you can't park there!! We don't have sidewalks and people walk around our neighborhoods a lot. Slow down!!! You wouldn't be the first truck I ran out in front of with a baseball bat and stopped after the 5th time passing my house at 50 mph!! Use your head!!

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picksbigwagon 11

When looking for a house in Prior Lake, we looked at the house on dewitte that was next to a thicket of land owned by the state, now that thicket is gone, and sherrif and DNR use it as their own parking lot. That would have had me extremely upset. I bet in 3 years, that little lot of land will be paved over........Definately need to head out to Dewitte and take a picture of the limited parking sign and send that to the city and the DNR. According to Frank Boyles, the DNR owns that lot at sand point. I am not sure who owns the land at Dewitte

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Nice thats what I like to hear, was doing an annual trip to LOW with my buddies, but to be quite honest biggest fish I ever saw in 10 plus trips was 27 inches, I caught 3 bigger than that on the pond last year, and hey I can stay in Wright county where I live and catch 10 inch walleyes.. I don't make it up to that end of the lake ever, usually fish the south end..Bought a wheel house this year, would loke to set it up as base camp and hopefully be able to head up toward that end and do some exploring..And thanks for the input, thinking there is a lot of readers and not many writers on this site nowadays...